An Exhibition of etchings and woodcuts by Dushyant Patel at Gallerie Ganesha, E-557, Greater Kailash-II > 17th October-20th November 2012

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Time : 11:00 am - 6:00 pm

Entry : Free

Place : Gallerie Ganesha, E-557, Greater Kailash-II, New Delhi-110048
Website : gallerieganesha.com | Map | Nearest Metro Station - 'Kailash Colony(Violet Line)'

Event Details : An Exhibition of etchings and woodcuts by Dushyant Patel. 

One of the most enduring and distinctive printmaking formats is that of etchings, an ‘intaglio’ (Italian for ‘cut in’) method in which damp sheets of paper, held under great pressure, draw ink out of recessed areas of metal plates. In keeping with its gallery vision of promoting art forms that have been over-shadowed by the current blitzkrieg of new media, Shobha Bhatia, Director, Gallerie Ganesha presents a solo show of etchings by the 25-year-old, Baroda-based Dushyant Patel. Featuring 45 etchings.
Etchings use a chemical process in which the plate is first covered with an acid-resistant ground, and then worked with an etching needle. The metal exposed by the needle is recessed by the action of an acid bath. In this process, the artist may transfer the image onto the plate from a drawing or work directly on the metal.
Says Shobha Bhatia, Director, Gallerie Ganesha: “Patel’s etchings attracted me because of their immensely beautiful graphic quality. It’s a complicated process but it’s also immensely interactive. Patel is also the youngest recipient of the Arts Ananda Trust award which was given to him after a nationwide search for young talent.”
What then attracted this young artist to this art form when his contemporaries have mostly veered towards the far more sensational new media art?
“While studying at MSU (Baroda), I was exposed to etchings and I was thrilled with the possibilities of colours, texture and the painterly qualities the technique offers,” says Patel who took up art much against the wishes of a businessman father but encouraged by a more supportive mother, “The effects produced in etchings are magical. Etchings provide me with the perfect technique of creating a gradation of the background which gives an other-worldly feel to the concepts in my work.”
While etchings can be made on various metals, Patel has chosen to opt for zinc plates, using different techniques like line bite, aquatint, speed bite, deep etchings as per the demand of his works. “During printing, I do local intaglio of different colours and also apply a colourful top roll to create a ‘painting’ effect in my prints.” he explains.
In the show, Patel explores and expresses ideas about the human being, male-female relationships and his own relationship with his immediate surroundings, using various metaphorical symbols like an apple, a crow, a cactus, a swing and so on. For instance, in his work Brimming Desire, as the title suggests, the work talks about the unrequited desires of a human being, while Wedding Car speaks the language of youngsters all over the world who have a romantic notion of marriage. The work titled Morning Dreams is about how the middle class dreams of a perfect home while some of his works like Silent Desire, Piggy and The Pink depict the unsaid dynamics between male and female relationships in a metaphorical way.
Inspired greatly by English printmaker David Hockney, Patel creates metaphorical images which talk about human relationships and his immediate world. “For me, life has been full of sentiments, emotions and excitements. And I have shared my experiences with others through my created visual world and will continue to do so.”
While etchings will continue to remain his first love, Patel promises to soon begin work in other forms of printmaking. The subjects will, however, remain the same – the eternal flux between man and his relationships with people and nature.

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